iPad great for little ones

Although I have come to the conclusion that iPads are still, for the most part, a luxury item not worth recommending for our students, I do think that the iPad is an amazing tool for toddlers and preschoolers.  There are a number of apps out there that allow young children to have tactile experiences with letters and numbers, to listen to stories in an interactive and entertaining manner, and to build skills like pattern recognition.  I can easily see iPads becoming a staple in early education classrooms.

If we decide to create a class set for our girls, we need to think about using the iPads differently than we have been as individuals.  Instead, the iPads would become tailored to the objectives of the teachers.  I think there is great potential long term, but for now, using iPads over laptops would feel like a cumbersome step backwards.

by Ryanne